"I didn’t want to live anymore": Lizzo gets real about her mental struggles during 2023 Harassment Lawsuit

Rapper and singer Lizzo, aka Melissa Viviane Jefferson, shared her struggles with mental health with the audience during her recent concert. On March 12, 2025, she performed at The Wiltern in Los Angeles, addressing the struggles and explaining how fans saved her.

This pertains to 2023 when some of her backup dancers initiated a s*xual harassment lawsuit against her. She stated:

“About a year and a half ago, I was in such a dark depression. I was so heartbroken that I didn’t want to live anymore.”

Lizzo shared that she was apprehensive about being around people and, hence, stayed away. She gradually overcame that fear and attended a concert, where a fan recognized her. They expressed their love and hugged her, and the experience touched her.

She said moments of kindness grew into something much bigger. Lizzo found that more people showed her love and support. The singer added:

“It was f*cking life-saving. After that experience, I was like, ‘Damn, you can’t get this kind of sh*t on the Internet, bro. This is the kind of love you can only get in real life.”

According to The Wrap, Lizzo clarified that her story wasn’t meant to get sympathy, as she said she was beyond that. However, she wanted to highlight the plight of people struggling with depression.

She acknowledged that many people experience this feeling and stressed the importance of seeking support, even though she knows how difficult it can be.

Lizzo addressed the concerns of body shaming in a self-recorded video

Lizzo had previously opened up about her struggles with being body-shamed. In a self-recorded video, reposted by third-party channels, she shared that while she was familiar with body changes, her focus was her mental health.

She explained that exercising has been more about maintaining her mental well-being than changing her appearance. Staying active helped boost her mood and prevented negative thoughts about her body.

The singer emphasized that physical changes were a natural part of life, but what truly matters is having control over her thoughts and choices. Everything she ate and what she did was ultimately for her mental well-being. Lizzo said:

“Just thinking about my body and like the environment and I think a lot of people see a fat person that way and immediately just assume that everything they are doing is to be thin. I am not trying to be thin. I don’t ever want to be thin. Will my body fluctuate from this size? Will I get a little smaller depending on some of the choices I make or a little bigger depending on some of the choices I make on my life?”

Trending

In a 2022 interview with Harper's Bazaar, she reflected on how fame changes how others see someone. She said her personality, struggles, and interests remained the same, but how people perceived her completely changed.

She also discussed with her therapist the difficulty of letting go of her pre-fame life, emphasizing that adjusting to fame later in life differed from those who have always been in the spotlight.

×

Was this article helpful?

Thank You for feedback